Java House launches in Eastridge Mall

Published: Thursday, July 17, 2014 at 05:08 PM.

A pair of entrepreneurial siblings chose Eastridge Mall for an independent coffee shop — Java House — after long careers in sales.

“Owning a coffee shop is something I’ve always wanted to do, probably for eight or 10 years,” said Joshua Rutenberg, co-owner of Java House. “We saw this opportunity, we negotiated a good deal and built the shop out ourselves, and we jumped on it.”

Located on the first floor of Gastonia’s Eastridge Mall near Belk, the coffee shop was founded in mid-April by siblings Joshua and Adina Rutenberg.

The shop sells a variety of iced, frappe and hot flavored coffees and drinks, many of the recipes created by the Rutenbergs themselves, and locally made baked goods. Bright colored menus and locally produced art hang from the shop’s dark walls.

Grinning with satisfaction and pointing at the walls, Joshua said the pair built and outfitted the store’s interior completely by themselves. The process took about six weeks.

And while it’s been her brother’s dream to run a coffee shop, Adina said she was influenced by mall ownership when considering the venture.

“I talked to the mall’s owner, and his passion for the mall is what made me want to come here,” Adina said. “That may not be the best business answer, but I really believe in his energy and passion and plans for the mall.”

While the two have owned small businesses before, the Java House is a departure from anything they’ve done in the past.

“This is a totally different world from sales, and something that we’re learning,” Joshua said. “We did a ton of research, and we bought the best machines knowing what we knew, but we’re figuring it out as we go.”

The response to their drink recipes has been encouraging, Adina said, especially the shop’s Chocolate Cookie Crunch Frappe.

“We offer samples a lot, and that one never fails to go over great and get people in the door,” Joshua said. “Folks sip and they just have to come in.”

He said the decision to open the venture away from the mall’s food court and near Belk was an easy one because a former coffee shop leased the same location for nine years.

“Our thinking was that people who were familiar with that shop would naturally come over here,” Joshua said.

Both owners believe Eastridge should use special events and positivity to bring outside customers into the mall, which they said was the basis for the “Random Acts of Coffee” program they launched more than a month ago. Once per week for the past five weeks, all the employees at a store selected by Java House receive a free drink of their choosing.

“We say, ‘OK, this is a good deed we did for you, but you have to pay it forward and do something for somebody else,” Adina said. “It’s about spreading positivity and getting the happiness back in this mall because it’s kind of down right now.”

Joshua said he believes happy owners, managers and employees can lead to happier customers.

“If you bring that energy back to this place, then people come to the mall,” Joshua said.

Adina said she is also surprised at the way her life has improved since she turned to brewing coffee.

“Sales, while I think I was great at it, it just wasn’t for me,” Adina said. “My quality of life just wasn’t that good, and I’m so surprised by how it’s gone up since I’ve been here.”

Working with her brother is sometimes difficult — she thinks it’s easier to “hit below the belt” than she might with another business partner — but said the pair take their relationship a day at a time.

Both said they are surprised at the public’s warm reception to their coffee shop, as compared to earlier sales outings.

“People love us, and that’s so different than when we were in sales,” Adina said. “People just automatically assume a salesman is lying to them, but here, people bring us gifts.”

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A pair of entrepreneurial siblings chose Eastridge Mall for an independent coffee shop — Java House — after long careers in sales.

“Owning a coffee shop is something I’ve always wanted to do, probably for eight or 10 years,” said Joshua Rutenberg, co-owner of Java House. “We saw this opportunity, we negotiated a good deal and built the shop out ourselves, and we jumped on it.”

Located on the first floor of Gastonia’s Eastridge Mall near Belk, the coffee shop was founded in mid-April by siblings Joshua and Adina Rutenberg.

The shop sells a variety of iced, frappe and hot flavored coffees and drinks, many of the recipes created by the Rutenbergs themselves, and locally made baked goods. Bright colored menus and locally produced art hang from the shop’s dark walls.

Grinning with satisfaction and pointing at the walls, Joshua said the pair built and outfitted the store’s interior completely by themselves. The process took about six weeks.

And while it’s been her brother’s dream to run a coffee shop, Adina said she was influenced by mall ownership when considering the venture.

“I talked to the mall’s owner, and his passion for the mall is what made me want to come here,” Adina said. “That may not be the best business answer, but I really believe in his energy and passion and plans for the mall.”

While the two have owned small businesses before, the Java House is a departure from anything they’ve done in the past.

“This is a totally different world from sales, and something that we’re learning,” Joshua said. “We did a ton of research, and we bought the best machines knowing what we knew, but we’re figuring it out as we go.”

The response to their drink recipes has been encouraging, Adina said, especially the shop’s Chocolate Cookie Crunch Frappe.

“We offer samples a lot, and that one never fails to go over great and get people in the door,” Joshua said. “Folks sip and they just have to come in.”

He said the decision to open the venture away from the mall’s food court and near Belk was an easy one because a former coffee shop leased the same location for nine years.

“Our thinking was that people who were familiar with that shop would naturally come over here,” Joshua said.

Both owners believe Eastridge should use special events and positivity to bring outside customers into the mall, which they said was the basis for the “Random Acts of Coffee” program they launched more than a month ago. Once per week for the past five weeks, all the employees at a store selected by Java House receive a free drink of their choosing.

“We say, ‘OK, this is a good deed we did for you, but you have to pay it forward and do something for somebody else,” Adina said. “It’s about spreading positivity and getting the happiness back in this mall because it’s kind of down right now.”

Joshua said he believes happy owners, managers and employees can lead to happier customers.

“If you bring that energy back to this place, then people come to the mall,” Joshua said.

Adina said she is also surprised at the way her life has improved since she turned to brewing coffee.

“Sales, while I think I was great at it, it just wasn’t for me,” Adina said. “My quality of life just wasn’t that good, and I’m so surprised by how it’s gone up since I’ve been here.”

Working with her brother is sometimes difficult — she thinks it’s easier to “hit below the belt” than she might with another business partner — but said the pair take their relationship a day at a time.

Both said they are surprised at the public’s warm reception to their coffee shop, as compared to earlier sales outings.

“People love us, and that’s so different than when we were in sales,” Adina said. “People just automatically assume a salesman is lying to them, but here, people bring us gifts.”